REBEL Mersey MP Frank Field urged Gordon Brown to stop “behaving like Napoleon” after forcing the Prime Minister into a humiliating U-turn over the scrapping of the 10p tax rate.

The Birkenhead MP, who revealed the dramatic late-night talks that triggered the climbdown, said Mr Brown must move quickly into “phase two” of his premiership – by listening to his critics.

Mr Field said: “People don’t want a prime minister who behaves like Napoleon, never admitting a mistake. They prefer one who will accept he is sometimes wrong.

“This must have been really hurtful for him, but I hope it signals phase two of his premiership, where he shows himself not only capable of listening, but more importantly of acting on what he hears.”

The wounding criticisms came after Mr Brown hastily put together a package of measures to backdate compensation to the 5.3m people hit by the axing of the 10p rate earlier this month.

The Prime Minister was forced to act after Mr Field won the support of 44 fellow Labour MPs demanding financial aid – enough to inflict a catastrophic defeat on the Finance Bill next Monday.

At the weekend, No.10 had ruled out any concessions and, just three weeks ago, Mr Brown personally denied there were any losers – laying bare the scale of his humiliation.

In the Commons, Tory leader David Cameron taunted the Prime Minister for being exposed as a “loser not a leader”, also accusing him of “weakness, dithering and indecision”.

Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat leader, joined in the attacks, accusing Mr Brown of “doing the Tories’ job for them” by “penalising the poor”.

The U-turn came after Mr Brown summoned Mr Field to a face-to-face Downing Street meeting, late on Tuesday night, to discuss a way out of the crisis.

But it took two more meetings with No.10 officials, and a tele-phone call from Mr Brown before an agreement was reached, allowing Mr Field’s amendment to be withdrawn.

Winter fuel payments will be hiked for pensioners hit by the 10p rate abolition, and tax credits extended to other losers.

Crucially, the measures – coming into force in the autumn – will be backdated to this month.

However, low-paid workers will still see their wage packets shrink for at least six months until compensation arrives, with many losing £4-a-week in the interim.

That points to trouble on the doorstep for Labour activists in the run-up to the May 1 local elections, with the party now fearing an even worse pummelling.

Many Labour MPs are furious with Mr Brown, who scrapped the 10p rate in his last Budget as Chancellor. However despite his dismal poll ratings, no leadership challenge is likely.